|
All-Century Roster: Orioles
By Gary Brooks
SportsLine Baseball Editor
|
The "Orioles" nickname signified Baltimore professional baseball as
early as 1882 but it wasn't until 1954 that the current Orioles version was
transplanted to Baltimore from St. Louis, beginning the city's tie with
Major League Baseball.
 | | | Cal Ripken and The Streak defined the Orioles in the 1990s. | |
A decent minor-league system, begun by Branch Rickey with the Browns,
started to produce talent. Players like Brooks Robinson arrived so that by
the mid-60s when Frank Robinson was acquired in a one-sided trade with the
Cincinnati Reds and a solid group of pitchers was maturing, the Orioles
turned into the best team in the majors over a six-year period from
1966-71. They won the World Series in 1966 and '70 and lost the Series in
'69 and '71.
Under manager Earl Weaver, from 1968-82, the Orioles developed a
reputation as a team that played great defense, had power hitters capable
of changing games with one swing and had solid pitching.
The Orioles finished first or second 15 times from 1966-83. They
returned to the World Series in 1979, for the first time since 1971, losing
to the Pirates. In 1983, Cal Ripken became an MVP and along with Eddie
Murray led the Orioles to their third World Series title.
The organization has had its ups and downs since then, with the only
consistency being Ripken. With an enormous payroll in the late '90s, the
Orioles failed to reach lofty expectations. They advanced to the ALCS in
1997 but then had miserable seasons in '98 and '99.
With Ripken nearing the end of his career and little depth in the
pitching staff, Baltimore's next World Series surge isn't in sight.
Lineup
| Gus Triandos, Catcher, 1955-61 |
| A three-time All-Star, Triandos once held the AL record for home runs by a
catcher when he hit 30 in 1958. He came to the Orioles from the Yankees as
part of a 17-player trade in 1955 and became the starting backstop for
seven seasons, three of which he topped 20 homers. |
| Eddie Murray, 1B, 1977-88, '96 |
| Murray never won an MVP award but he was in the running each year during
his prime from 1981-85 when he was arguably the most consistent slugger in
the game and also won three Gold Gloves. Murray will be considered one of
the greatest switch-hitters ever. He ranks second to Mickey Mantle in
switch-hit home runs (536-504). He's right behind Cal Ripken and Brooks
Robinson on the Orioles' career offensive statistics lists. Murray's two
homers in Game 5 of the 1983 World Series brought Baltimore its third title. |
| Roberto Alomar, 2B, 1996-98 |
| Alomar holds the Orioles single-season records for home runs (20) and RBI
(84) by a second baseman and his .312 average over his three seasons is the
highest career mark in club history. He also holds the Orioles' record for
runs with 132 scored in 1996. He won Gold Gloves in 1996 and '98 and is the
career fielding percentage leader among second basemen. |
| Cal Ripken, SS, 1981-99 |
| Defining Cal Ripken begins with The Streak but doesn't end until an epic of
chapters has chronicled his rise to deity status in Baltimore. Ripken needs
nine hits to become the second AL player with 3,000 hits and 400 home runs.
He's the Orioles career leader in runs, hits, homers and RBI, among other
things, has won two MVPs (1983, '91) and two Gold Gloves. The complete
version of his story would require a whole web site instead of a paragraph. |
| Brooks Robinson, 3B, 1955-77 |
| Robinson was known for his vast range, vacuum glove and accurate arm, which
combined to win him a record 16 Gold Gloves at the hot corner. He was also
a consistently productive hitter and was the Orioles' first AL MVP, winning
the award in 1964 (.317-28-118). Robinson was the MVP of the 1966 All-Star
Game, one of 18 he was selected to. His performance in the 1970 World
Series cemented him as a Baltimore hero and remained the defining segment
of his career, which culminated with Hall of Fame induction in his first
year on the ballot. |
| Boog Powell, LF, 1961-74 |
| Powell played enough outfield early in his career to qualify here but he
earned his recognition as a cleanup-hitting first baseman in the middle of
an Orioles lineup that played in four World Series from 1966-71. Powell was
the AL MVP in 1970 (.297-35-114). He was a huge, powerful, left-handed
swinger who combined with Frank Robinson to form one of the most dangerous
back-to-back combos in the league when the Orioles won the World Series in
1966 and '70. |
| Brady Anderson, CF, 1988-99 |
| Anderson has one of the rarest accomplishments in history having had a
season of 20 homers and 50 steals and a season of 50 homers and 20 steals
but never another season similar to either. He owns the second-biggest
increase and decrease in homers in history. He appeared in three
All-Star games and for the most part, has been an average hitter who's been
a quality run producer atop the Orioles' lineup. |
| Frank Robinson, RF, 1966-71 |
| Robinson is looked at as the key figure in turning the Orioles from a solid
squad into World Champions. He was acquired from the Reds, having won the
NL MVP in 1964, and immediately became the best player in the AL, winning
the Triple Crown (.316-49-122) in 1966. In his six seasons in Baltimore,
the Orioles were in four World Series. He hit 179 of his fourth-best ever
586 home runs for the Orioles. |
| George Sisler, DH, 1915-27 |
| Sisler, who began his career as a pitcher and once beat Walter Johnson, is
the best player in the St. Louis Browns portion of the franchise history.
His career .340 average is highlighted by a .407 (1920) and a .420 (1922). His
257 hits in 1920 remain the major league record and his .420 average is the
AL record. |
Pitchers
| Jim Palmer, SP, 1965-67, '69-84 |
| Palmer beat Sandy Koufax 2-0 in Koufax's final career game, in Game 2 of
the 1966 World Series and went on to reach Koufax-like numbers for much of
the rest of his career. Palmer would become an eight-time 20-game winner
and three-time Cy Young Award winner who finished with 268 wins and a 2.86
ERA, all for the Orioles. |
| Mike Mussina, SP, 1991-99 |
| Though he has yet to win 20 games in a season, Mussina's .673 winning
percentage (136-66) is seventh best in history among pitchers with 90 wins
or more. He's won at least 13 games in each of his complete seasons. He's a
five-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove winner. |
| Dave McNally, SP, 1962-74 |
| McNally's four-hit, 1-0 shutout of the Dodgers brought the Orioles their
first World Series title in 1966. He went on to become a four-time All-Star
as a left-hander with outstanding control. In 1968, he had his first of
four consecutive 20-win seasons which included a league-best 24 wins in
1970. McNally's greatest 1970 moment though was becoming the only pitcher
ever to hit a grand slam in the World Series. After the 1974 season he and
Andy Messersmith became the first legal free agents in baseball history.
McNally moved on to Montreal where he went 3-6 and his career was done. He
went 181-113 as an Oriole. |
| Urban Shocker, SP, 1918-24 |
| In addition to having one of the greatest names in baseball history,
Shocker was a solid right-handed pitcher for the St. Louis Browns. He went
126-80 playing for just two winning teams. His 27 wins in 1921 led the AL. |
| Mike Cuellar, SP, 1969-76 |
| Cuellar, a Cuban who perfected a palm ball in the minors and was with
three organizations before blossoming as an Oriole, was arguably the game's
best pitcher from 1969-74. He won at least 18 games each season in that
stretch and 20 games four times. In 1969 he tied Denny McLain for the Cy
Young Award. His 24 wins in 1970 equaled McNally for the AL lead. He was
143-88 as an Oriole. |
| Stu Miller, RP, 1963-67 |
| Miller has the lowest ERA (2.37) of any Oriole with more than 500 innings.
He saved 92 games over five seasons. |
| Bench |
| Harlond Clift, Mark Belanger, Ken Williams, Ken Singleton, Rafael
Palmeiro, Al Bumbry, Bobby Grich, Paul Blair, Jim Gentile, Chris Hoiles,
Albert Belle, Luis Aparicio, Don Baylor, Vern Stephens. |
| Best season |
| The Orioles have had more successful regular seasons but 1966
was the most rewarding being that it brought Baltimore its first World
Series crown. Frank Robinson's Triple Crown bat led the way to 97 wins and
the AL pennant. In Game 1 of the World Series against defending champion
Los Angeles, the Robinsons (Frank and Brooks) hit back-to-back homers in
the top of the first inning in Game 1 and immediately legitimized the
Orioles chances. They went on to sweep the Dodgers as the pitching staff
allowed just two runs in the four games, with the final two games being 1-0
shutouts from Wally Bunker and Dave McNally. |
| |
| Worst season |
| The St. Louis Browns had several awful seasons, even some in
which less than 100,000 fans showed up all year. But the dregs of franchise
history came in 1988 when the Orioles began the season 0-21 before
finishing 54-107. The 21 consecutive losses are an AL record. Eddie Murray
and Cal Ripken remained fairly consistent but there was little other
production in the lineup and the pitching staff, led by Jeff Ballard's
eight wins, was awful. |
| Best individual season, player |
| Frank Robinson's Triple Crown in 1966 is
certainly impressive and rates as the best season in the Baltimore portion
of the franchise's history. But overall, George Sisler's 1920 is hard to
top. He set a major league record with 257 hits, hitting .407. He led the
league in total bases (399, 11 more than Babe Ruth), was second in homers
(19 to Ruth's 54), drove in 122 runs and stole 42 bases. |
| |
| Best individual season, pitcher |
| Only one pitcher since (John Tudor in
1985) has done what Jim Palmer did in 1975 -- pitch 10 shutouts. Palmer compiled 23
wins and a 2.07 ERA, leading the league in each. He completed 25 games in
winning his third Cy Young Award. |
|
|
|